Yesterday, on Tuesday 8th June 2021, a large majority of the members of the European Parliament voted for the introduction of the COVID Certificate. This vote came after a thorough negotiation between the European Parliament, the Member States and the European Commission. In those negotiations, we, as Greens, addressed many of the concerns that we […]
EU infringement proceedings/ECB ruling: Appropriate way to resolve the legal conflict
Tomorrow, 9 June, the EU Commission will officially pave the way to an infringement procedure against Germany. In May last year, I had demanded such an infringement procedure from EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen after the German Federal Constitutional Court’s ruling on the ECB’s bond purchases. She then promised me that she would […]
New rules for Bitcoin & Co: My proposals for the EU crypto regulation
Dear friends, dear interested, Europe is finally moving forward with the regulation of crypto-assets. This is to introduce binding rules for existing cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum and to create a framework for innovative financial services based on blockchain. After the EU Commission presented a legislative proposal for Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) last autumn, […]
Cyprus announces veto on minimum effective corporate taxation: Europe must act now
June 3. The Economic and Monetary Affairs committee of the European Parliament has just held an exchange of views with Constantinos Petrides, Minister of Finance of the Republic of Cyprus. His governing party is a member of the European People’s Party (EPP). When I asked him about his country’s support for a minimum effective corporate […]
EU agreement on public country-by-country reporting: a milestone for greater tax justice!
1 June. Negotiators from the Council and the European Parliament have just agreed on a compromise text for public country-by-country reporting by multinational companies. Companies operating in Europe with a total consolidated turnover of more than €750 million in the last two consecutive financial years will have to disclose relevant tax information by country. This […]
Open Letter to the EU Commission for credible Sustainable Finance Rules
Personal letter from actors in the field of Sustainable Finance (Background information/ Sign here!) Dear Commissioner McGuinness, Dear Vice-President Dombrovskis, We are writing to you today as providers, investors and other professional stakeholders in the Sustainable Finance sector. In these weeks, the European Commission, in close consultation with the Member States, will decide on the […]